1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to flexible removable covers for open-bodied trucks.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
In recent years, safety and environmental conscious lawmakers have produced a multitude of ordinances requiring vehicles transporting loads on the public roads to provide covers so as to prevent material from leaving the vehicle causing public nuisance and hazard.
At first this was handled mostly by lashing tarpaulins over the loads. This procedure was time consuming and it was not long before products started appearing on the market to reduce the time and labor involved. Arrangements of varying complexity have appeared. A common arrangement uses heavy springs at the back working in opposition to a winch either manual or power driven at the front. Strictly manually operated arrangements have usually suffered from a necessity of the operator climbing up and down from the vehicle with many of the difficulties of the simple lashed tarpaulin. Most of the presently popular arrangements require substantial installation expense and are not readily transferred between trucks. Transfer between trucks becomes a particular problem when a trucker replaces a truck and must either buy a new cover apparatus complete with installation costs or must resort to the expense of removing the apparatus from the old vehicle and still run the full installation cost again.